The casting fishing reel art is extremely crowded and very well developed, and the teachings thereof are directed to many of the specific aspects and mechanisms of a smoothly and efficiently functioning casting reel. Many conventional casting reels have "free wheeling" line spools which are bearing supported for optimum performance during casting, and which reels are clutched and declutched between free wheeling casting condition and mechanically driven and controlled line retrieval condition by suitable control arrangements.
Many of the prior art reels have various line distributing or "level winding" arrangements which are adapted to distribute the retrieved line in uniform abutting courses across the spool hub during rewinding or line retrieval operations. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,600,774; 1,369,785; 2,493,428; 368,992; and 2,321,650 all show level wind line distributors which pivot in a plane transverse to the retrieved fishing line. Each of these patents discloses a lever which is pivoted by an eccentric mechanism driven by a gear. In some cases, the gear is a worm wheel, in other cases, it is a conventional gear. The levers shown assume a variety of shapes, including one having a closed, elongated loop; an open fork cooperating with a closed channel to define a line entrapping lever; or a similar open fork arrangement cooperating by superimposition with an elongated channel to define a line entrapping opening; or a pair of U-shaped lever-like elements.
In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, an improved cross winding or level winding arrangement is provided in which a hollow, shallow U-shaped line guide is arranged transversely of the path of the fishing line to guide the line as it passes thereover. Disposed within the hollow line guide is a pivoting lever, which is effectively inactivated or disengaged from the line at each end of its stroke by disappearance or complete retraction within the side walls of the hollow guide. This unique arrangement provides for a simple and reliable "non-trapping" line distributor, i.e., one which does not encircle or otherwise enclose the line or interfere with the line during casting. The pivoting line distributor element is driven during line retrieval by an eccentric mechanism associated with the crank-driven winding mechanism, and the line distributor is inactivated during casting.
Clutch mechanisms for clutching and declutching a winding gear from a winding pinion in casting reels having level winding mechanisms are also generally known to the art. For example, prior art reels have, in the past, effected such clutching and declutching by a wide variety of mechanisms, including those shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,051,409, in which a crank handle-actuated mechanism automatically reengages the clutch of a reel which also includes a level wind. Similarly, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,076,097 and 2,129,386 show cammable pinions which are clutched into and out of engagement with a drive train under the control of an operating lever; U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,536,583 and 2,980,361 show the types of pinions which are generally utilized in conventional casting reels; while U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,425,644 and 3,171,609 show further variations of clutching and control arrangements for free wheeling, bearing supported line spools.
As will become apparent hereinafter, a simple and reliable clutching and declutching mechanism, representing a further aspect of the present invention, provides an improvement over prior art proposals and an important contribution to this very crowded fishing reel art. The new mechanism lends itself to mass production of casting reels of the general type disclosed herein at reasonable costs; lends itself to incorporation in new reels having associated therewith the new and improved level winding mechanism; and provides for a compact, desirable, reliable, easy to maintain and operate casting reel.
For a better understanding of the construction of the new casting reel and a better appreciation of the new and improved level wind and clutch arrangements incorporated therein and their attendant advantages, reference should be made to the following detailed description of the new reel taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.